Pulp and the Arctic Monkeys are perhaps the most famous of the city’s musical exports to reference their native Sheffield, especially in their earlier songs.
From a bus journey to High Green to a seductively seedy tour of Sheffield’s suburbs, via references to The Leadmill nightclub and famous city streets such as The Moor and the Wicker, songwriting maestros Jarvis Cocker and Alex Turner have both mined their Sheffield upbringing extensively when composing lyrics.
But famous London singers and groups, including The Clash, Elton John and Stormzy, have all notably name-checked Sheffield in their music, as have Billy Bragg and Paul Heaton.
We’ve put together a list of some of the best songs paying musical homage to the Steel City, which naturally includes more of Sheffield’s finest in The Human League, Richard Hawley, and Reverend and the Makers.
If you’re wondering why there’s no place for Def Leppard, that’s because we’ve not been able to find any Sheffield references in the band’s extensive back catalogue, despite their fondness for the city in which they were born and raised.
Def Leppard’s lead singer Joe Elliott reportedly once described the city as a ‘great place with great people’ but said 'there’s nothing in Sheffield to write songs about’.
What’s your favourite song about Sheffield, and which band or singer has best captured the city’s unique character on record?
- RELATED: Throwback to nights out partying in Sheffield in early 2000s
- RELATED: What you can expect as Black Owned Markets returns to Cutlery Works
- RELATED: Sheffield artist launches fundraiser to replace stolen equipment
- RELATED: Popular band Keo announce headline 2027 show in Sheffield – how to get tickets (aff)
9. The Crookes Laundry Murder (1922) - The Crookes
The Crookes loved Sheffield so much they even named themselves after one of its more picturesque suburbs. One of their songs, The Crookes Laundry Murder (1922), is about a notorious crime in said suburb. Its lyrics include the haunting lines: "Take me back to 1922. Let echoes of the past bleed through/And find before your eyes, an ashen scene unfold." Photo: Submitted
10. Crazy Titch (Interlude) - Stormzy
Stormzy was born a long way from Sheffield, in the London borough of Croydon, but he does reference the Steel City in his song Crazy Titch (Interlude). He sings: "I know certi' guys from all over/Brum, Manchester, Notts, Sheffield, Leeds, Manny, Liverpool/These people all say the same thing, 'We don't really even know what grime is but we know who Stormzy is'." Photo: Tristan Fewings
11. Sheffield: Sex City - Pulp
Pulp's lyrics draw heavily on Jarvis Cocker's formative years in Sheffield and the city is referenced in songs like Babies, which mentions Stanhope Road, in Intake, and Wickerman, which takes listeners on a musical tour of the lead singer's native city, from The Leadmill and The Moor to Broomhall. But for sheer number of Sheffield place names you can't beat the 8m32s opus Sheffield: Sex City, which sees the band at their seedily seductive best. It opens with a long list of neighbourhoods read out in a breathy whisper, including Pitsmoor, Wincobanks and Ecclesall. Photo: Yui Mok
12. The Sheffield Song - The Supernaturals
Glaswegian band The Supernaturals are probably best known for their indie anthem Smile. It's not clear what inspired the title of their lovesick tune The Sheffield Song but perhaps it was a doomed romance in the Steel City. Its lyrics include the cutting lines: "And I can't help comparing the two of you/It's like a Formula 1 with a Subaru." Photo: Dan Burn-Forti